The only money we have going into the market is in our HSA.

Joined bigger pocket to achieve my dream of owning a dream house in (already crazy) Hawaii market haha.

I've also loved learning about the other 10 markets we operate in.I have two big goals.

You're in a strong rental market, and house hacking a small multifamily in Phoenix is a smart way to build wealth.

And yes it sure isn't what it seems, especially in this market.

Personally, I would never live in PHX, but that is all personal biases (I prefer seasons and greenery), and clearly lots of people choose to live in PHX.At the end of the day, I would argue market selection almost only comes into play when you are talking assets that cater to institutional buyers that have to get investment committee sign off. 

I find it strange that no one has if it's allowed, but if you are first to market, you are essentially the guinea pig.

The property's strong market demand made it an ideal candidate for a profitable fix-and-flip project.

If you do not qualify, you would then look into if you would qualify with renting your departing residence. 75% of the lease will be used to offset that departing residence mortgage. as you mentioned the timing of renting the place can absolutely be tricky so you would hope you do not have to do this.Finally, and I guess would be sorta of a trick, but we do bridge loans on occasion in this case IF you can qualify once you get the property rented at market value even if debt to income ratio is too high before it is rented.

Out-of-state investing in cash-flow markets or partnering with experienced investors for passive returns are also great ways to put your capital to work.